Colorado voters in November will be asked to raise their taxes for five years in order to generate $3 billion for education.

Secretary of State Scott Gessler[3] today certified the tax increase initiative for the November ballot as Proposition 103[4], culminating a months-long and sometimes lonely campaign by state Sen. Rollie Heath to put the issue before voters.

Heath, D-Boulder, said getting the initiative on the November ballot was another indication of the effort’s momentum. Heath needed the valid signatures of 86,105 voters, and a random sample determined he had 98,369 signatures.

“My dad always said, “Son, you’ve got to earn your spurs every day,” Heath said. “People were justified in not taking our initiative seriously, and so we had to prove there was sufficient support out there in the general public.”

If approved by voters, the initiative would increase the state’s income tax from 4.63 percent to 5 percent for five years. Meanwhile, the initiative would – also for five years – raise the state’s sales tax from 2.9 percent to 3 percent.

The state has cut K-12 education by more than $500 million over the past several years, and a landmark school funding trial is currently underway in Denver District Court.

“Democrats don’t get it,” McNulty said. “Colorado’s hardworking families and job creators are struggling to survive in this recession. The last thing they need right now is Democrats pushing another state tax increase.”